Walkthrough part 5

Penelope is now the newest member of the team, but even with her impressive skills, Bentley realizes that recruiting the best demolitions expert is in order if the gang wants to get into the Cooper Vault. Unfortunately, that person is none other than Panda King. Despite Sly's disgust, our heroes set out in hopes of gaining his help.

Job 1: King of Fire (Murray)

Meditating alone, Panda doesn't seem to hear the gang calling out to him, so our heroes will have to get closer to him. This is also an excellent opportunity for the entire team to combine their abilities on their first mission together.

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Murray starts. He should bounce up from the tarp near the first pillar to reach the top of that pillar. From there, he should curl up into his ball form and then use the height to bounce his way across the line of pillars. After the last pillar, he can reach the high area, where a bridge over a small pond can be found.

Next, Penelope drives her RC car across the ice lake, which is too fragile for any of the heroes to step on. (Press the left stick to steer, X to accelerate, Square to go in reverse, and R1 to fire.) Her goal is to shoot the 7 bamboo shoots with her RC car's gun to split them apart.

With the bamboo shoots split, Sly can now spire jump across them to reach the high area, where Murray is waiting. Sly can get a boost from Murray (by "spire jumping" onto Murray and then leaping up again) to reach the two pinwheels. Hit both pinwheels to unlock them.

After the pinwheels are unlocked, Bentley should shoot his darts at the rockets connected to them, causing the pinwheels to spin. There are three rockets on each pinwheel. Hit them all.

Then, the Guru must use the two rockets on top of the small building near the pillars to break off the pinwheels. Possess a guard, and then use him to leap up onto the building (which is too high for the Guru to climb on his own). On top of the building, leap off the guard, and then use both rockets, which will automatically knock down the pinwheels, creating a path for the entire team to reach Panda. Get over to him.

Aided by the Guru, Sly enters the mind of Panda. The fireworks expert's calm exterior betrays his interior, which is still very troubled. Sly will find himself reliving the moment when he battled against Panda. (Those who have played through the first installment should recognize this scene.)

Go stop Panda's flame fu with some good old cane fu once more. When Sly is standing on the outer lower steps, Panda will hurl fireballs at him relentlessly. Run sideways and towards the boss to avoid his fireballs as well as to close in on him. Panda will not move away from the top center step.

When Sly nears Panda, the boss stops throwing fireballs and switches to using three different close-range attacks instead. In between these attacks, Sly can just run up, swing his cane at the boss, and then retreat. The trick is to keep moving and to avoid getting fried. Listen to the boss to know what move he is about to execute. The Fiery Wheel encircles Panda with a ring of flames. Simply back away from the boss to avoid this attack. The Palms of Thunder sends columns of flames up from where the boss slams the ground. This attack is always directed towards Sly, so he should move away as soon as the boss raises his hands. The Chop is a flaming karate chop directed at Sly's last position. Unlike with the Palms of Thunder, Sly can just run around Panda and hit him from the back while the boss chops away.

After enough fighting, Sly will realize this scene is nothing more than a dark memory and will try to talk Panda out of it. If he doesn't succeed, Panda will attack again. Eventually, Sly has to bring out Panda's sadness and convince the boss to meet with him back in the real world, as the two are today. To complete this job, break Panda out from his trance.

Episode 4, Day 1

Job 2: Get a Job (Bentley)

Panda isn't any happier than Sly about working with his former enemy, but he's willing to overlook things if the team can help him rescue his daughter, Jing. You see, some badass warlord named General Tsao has kidnapped her, and he plans to force her into marrying him against her wishes.

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Bentley figures that he can get some more useful intelligence if he can land a job as a wedding coordinator for the hopeful groom. Disguising himself after entering General Tsao's palace, Bentley should approach the boss to talk to him. Bentley soon learns that General Tsao isn't interested in a wedding coordinator, but he won't mind hiring a photographer, provided the photographer can take some good pictures.

Obviously, that's something for Sly to do. After Bentley gives him the update on the situation, Sly should use his photographer disguise (it's treated as a gadget) and approach the guards at the three designated areas (marked by the beacons). As with the guards back in Venice, Sly will have to provide the correct passwords (by entering the proper button patterns) after meeting the guards to avoid having his cover blown.

After giving a correct password, Sly, pretending to be a photographer already working for General Tsao, will ask the guards to pose. Take a picture (by pressing R1 while using the Binocucom), zooming in as necessary, and then move on to the next location. At the second location, if the guards move away, wait for them to pose together again before taking a picture. At the last location, a third guard will make like a jerk and get into the picture. Simply put away the Binocucom to have this unwanted guard move away. When he wanders off far enough, bring up the Binocucom again and quickly take the picture, before he comes back.

Using the pictures as samples of his work, Sly will enter General Tsao's palace. Inside, also take three photos of the boss. Be sure to zoom in enough. To complete this job, talk to General Tsao afterwards.

Job 3: Tearful Reunion (Murray)

The strange signal Penelope has picked up is originating from the gang's old van, which has floated from Jean Bison's lumber camp all the way over to General Tsao's territory.

Penelope will help Murray retrieve the frozen van with her RC copter. Follow the arrow to locate the van, and use the grappling hook to latch on to the frozen van. Now the arrow will be pointing towards Murray, so drag the van towards him. However, guards below will be firing missiles at the RC copter. Avoid the missiles by flying around them. For an easier time, kill the guards first by pulling them into the air with the grappling hook.

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After Penelope brings the van onto land, Murray should break away the ice surrounding it and waste all the enemies who appear. If Murray doesn't want to uppercut and then perform killing blows against them, he can also throw the guards into the river.

Given the many months it has spent on freezing waters, the van is inoperable, but Murray is adamant about pulling it back with him to the safehouse. Penelope can only help him now by using the RC copter to grapple away any enemies who try to kill him. Hover over Murray and pull up the guards who approach him. (The guards will ignore the van.)

Eventually, Penelope's RC copter will run out of fuel, so Panda will continue defending Murray by using a turret installed at the safehouse. (Press R1 to fire. Press the right stick up and down to zoom in and out.) Shoot away any spikes blocking Murray's path, and kill the guards who try to waste him. Take care not to shoot Murray by accident. Enemies who have been knocked down may not be dead yet, so feel free to shoot them again while they're lying down just to make sure. To keep up a constant stream of fire without overheating the gun, tap the trigger rapidly. To complete this job, help Murray reach the bottom of the safehouse.

Job 4: Grapple-Cam Break-In (Sly)

The grapple-cam is required for completing this job.

Bentley wants to see General Tsao's finance records, which are kept in the inner office that is protected by two padlocks. The two guards who carry the keys are in radio contact, so Bentley and Sly have to steal the keys together within a short period of time.

First, Sly should sneak behind the second guard (marked by the beacon). This can be easily done by jumping off from a high place and paragliding down to the shed behind the guard.

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When Sly is in position, Bentley should find the first guard (marked by the beacon). Bentley's hover pack can help him climb high walls and sneak up behind the guard with little trouble. Pick his pocket (by using the fishing pole) to obtain Door Key #1.

Immediately afterwards, Sly needs to drop down behind the second guard and pick his pocket to obtain Door Key #2. That being done, Sly should head over to the large statue of General Tsao (marked by the beacon) to meet Bentley and to hand over the second key.

Now that Bentley has both keys, he can enter the inner office (marked by the beacon). Not far inside, the security laser beams will stop him. Throw the grapple-cam through the laser beams, and switch to it. (Press the button that the grapple-cam is assigned to again to switch to it. Press X to use the grappling hook. Press Circle to call out. Hold Square to self-destruct.) By grappling around the room and calling out, lure the guard on the lower level over to a red floor switch. Once the guard steps on it, exit the grapple-cam, and shoot a dart at the guard.

With the first guard sleeping on the red switch on the lower level, a door on the second level will open. Switch back to the grapple-cam, and have it climb up into the upper corridor. Avoiding the spotlights along the way, lure the guard at the end of this corridor back to the red floor switch near the door. Again, when the guard is on the red switch, exit the grapple-cam, and fire a dart at the guard.

With the two guards sleeping on both red switches, the laser beams will shut off, allowing Bentley to enter. He needs to reach the terminal at the end of the upper corridor. To complete this job, successfully hack through the terminal.

Job 5: Laptop Retrieval (Bentley)

General Tsao may not be the most progressive man in the world, but he isn't stupid either. To mess with our heroes, he has swiped Bentley's laptop, so they cannot access Thief Net for now.

The team's immediate task now is to get back that laptop. Bentley should enter General Tsao's palace. Luckily, no guards are there, so find the computer at a corner of the main hall and hack through it. Doing so will let Bentley discover a secret passageway at the bell.

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Sly and the Guru will head over to that bell and use the secret passageway to reach a high ledge along the cliffs. While the Guru uses his telekinetic powers to lift guards and objects up into the air, Sly should spire jump across them until reaching the tunnel at the opposite cliffs. The Guru will keep those guards and objects lifted, so Sly can take his time crossing the sky.

While the Guru hangs back outside, Sly will enter the tunnel alone, encountering General Tsao on some sort of mystical battleground where people can leap meters across the air without effort. If Sly wants to get that laptop and teach the General some manners, he's gonna have to fight the boss right here.

Sly knows wire fu. Due to the spiritual energy in this place, he can leap laterally through the air without falling down, unless he flies out of the arena. To prevent that, he should spire jump to land on the bamboo shoots. Sly can also change his direction once in the middle of a flight by double jumping.

During the first phase, Tsao has two attacks. One is to shoot several fireballs at Sly, and the other is to rotate his shield while he flies straight from one bamboo shoot to another. Tsao will always try to stay away from Sly, so the trick to beating him is to leap towards him while he is flying forwards. Wait for him to start shooting fireballs, and then jump towards him, but at an angle. That way, Sly will avoid the fireballs while moving closer to the boss. Then, if Tsao starts flying forwards, Sly should double jump towards him, approaching him from the side and whacking him with the cane. When double jumping towards Tsao, also be sure to adjust for the boss' forward speed. Touching the shield while Tsao is flying isn't healthy, but Sly can actually hit the boss from the front before colliding into the shield. Sly can only attack once per jump, so his timing must be very good.

The second phase takes place on the ground below, where the physics return more or less to normal. Tsao will now attack Sly mainly by running close and rotating his shield (which is preceded by a very brief pause). If possible, Sly should use push attacks (by pressing Triangle and then Circle) against the boss. Due to their high accuracy and knockback properties, push attacks are very effective against Tsao, but be sure to use them only while Tsao is running forwards, after he finishes his rotating shield move, or right after he stands back onto his feet from getting knocked down. If Sly doesn't have push attacks, he will have to rely on regular attacks or spin attacks, and only after Tsao finishes his rotating shield move. (Unlike the push attacks, regular attacks are less likely to knock back the boss, so using them while the boss is running forwards or standing back up is not a good idea.)

Eventually, Tsao will also cry out and cast two different spells. The first one (preceded by a red glow) is to summon undead hands that reach up from the ground. The hands will move very quickly towards Sly, and Sly cannot outrun them. To avoid the hands, climb the bamboo shoots and wait for the hands to disappear. Don't stay on a bamboo shoot for too long, however, because Tsao can cut them down. The second spell (preceded by a blue glow) is to summon a dragon spirit that will also chase Sly. The spirits are much slower and can be easily avoided if Sly simply races around them on the ground, but unlike the hands, the spirits can climb trees. If Sly is on a bamboo shoot, he should prepare to leap away if there are any spirits below him.

Towards the end of the fight, Tsao will try to cast both types of spells more frequently, forcing Sly to deal with hands and spirits at the same time. Focus on dodging them first, and attack Tsao when things are clear. If Sly's timing is really good, he can actually keep using push attacks to hit Tsao every time the boss stands back up, knocking him down before he can whip out his rotating shield attack or cast a spell. To complete this job, defeat the boss. Just be glad Sly isn't a fat guy and Tsao isn't a big yellow chicken who passes out bad coupons.

Episode 4, Day 2

Job 6: Vampiric Demise

General Tsao may have been beaten off by Sly, but he is far from finished, and now he has raised an army of undead soldiers. Bentley comes up with the idea of using special fireworks to destroy the graves to stop the undead horde, and he asks Panda to help cover Sly while the master thief cracks open the safes that hold the special fireworks.

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Before Panda gets into action, he will have to settle his inner conflict. Eventually, he must convince himself that Sly can teach him humility. Once that's done, Panda should head towards Sly (marked by the beacon). Panda's main weapon is no longer his flame fu; it's his missile launcher. (Hold L1 to charge the rockets, and then release L1 to fire. While charging, center the camera onto targets to lock on to them. Beware; charging too long after the red meter becomes full will cause the rockets to explode, possibly killing Panda.)

For a quick test, Bentley asks Panda to use a full charge to destroy the large gravestone near the entrance to the inner office (the gate that used to have two padlocks). Also kill any undead enemies who appear.

There are three bundles of special fireworks. Follow Sly to each one, and while he is unlocking it, kill any enemies who approach. Panda's flaming chops will kill regular enemies with a single hit, but because the zombies explode when they die, Panda will need to use rockets against them if he doesn't want to get caught in their dying blasts. For an easier time at the third bundle, stand on the roof, where Sly is. From there, Panda should have no trouble launching rockets at the large waves of zombies who will enter from multiple directions.

After obtaining all the special fireworks, Panda should go to the large gravestone (marked by the beacon) back on the mountains. Use full charges of rockets against it. To complete this job, destroy this large gravestone.

Job 7: Down the Line (Murray)

Penelope wants Murray to break open the junction (marked by the beacon), so she can tap into General Tsao's phone lines. Unfortunately, some knockout gas hidden inside the box drops Murray, and now he is tied to a lot of explosives on the mountains, near the gravestones.

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Penelope needs to use her RC car to save Murray. She must follow the trail of gunpowder to find him, but a spark on this same trail has already been lit, so she has to outrace it. Along the way, dodge or shoot through any obstacles in the way. Watch out for the red explosive barrels, though. Either shoot them from afar, or drive past them without blowing them up. The regular guards won't notice the RC car, but the dragon spirits will, so kill them if they try to block the RC car's path. To save time, cut corners whenever possible, but take care not to fall off ledges or ram into walls. To complete this job, reach Murray before the spark does.

Job 8: A Battery of Peril (Bentley)

To recharge the van, Bentley says the team can use the battery behind a shed (marked by the beacon). Sly should go there and take it.

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Inspector Fox, who is in the area, will see Sly. Time to gun down the master thief. Carmelita should pursue Sly and keep pumping him full of shots. If he moves out of sight, display the beacons to locate him.

Of course, Sly has just been using Carmelita's electrical projectiles to recharge the battery. While she is making a call to her headquarters, Sly should quietly get up and sneak away. The battery has been charged a little too much, so Sly needs to place it in a power terminal (marked by the beacon) to stabilize it, without getting hit along the way. While the battery is being stabilized, fight off any enemies who appear.

When Bentley says so, take the battery again, and this time bring it to the power terminal below the safehouse, so it can charge up the van. While waiting, kill any enemies who show up. To complete this job, survive long enough for the battery to completely recharge the van.

Job 9: Operation: Wedding Crasher (Sly)

The gang is ready to save Jing. And just to show General Tsao who's boss, our heroes plan to steal his wealth, too.

For the first part, Sly simply has to reach and crawl through the roof vent of the temple, where General Tsao's treasures are kept, so he can open the doors from the inside and let Penelope and Murray in.

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For the second part, Penelope has to use her RC car to find and destroy the terminal under the dragon statue inside the temple. Drive under the laser gate at the beginning, and then follow the twisting path without touching the blue security fields, some of which move. There is no time limit here, so don't bother rushing. Shoot the terminal after reaching it.

Due to some unforeseen event, though, the security system in the temple does not completely shut off. For the third part, Penelope, getting an idea from Murray, has to use her RC car to destroy all 30 blue field sensors within the time limit. The alarms won't be going off for now, so feel free to drive through the security fields and shoot through the thin walls to save time. Also don't forget about the sensors near the dragon statue.

For the fourth part, with Penelope following, Murray should head to the dragon statue. Activate the double switches at Penelope's count of three. If dragon spirits appear, kill them.

For the fifth part (which occurs at the same time as the second part), Sly should get down to General Tsao's palace. After entering through the main doors, he needs to stabilize the vases (by pressing Circle), which will threaten to fall down from the shaking caused by Panda and the Guru tunneling beneath the palace. Run to catch the shaking vases before they tip over. For an easier time, Sly should stand in the middle of the room as much as possible, so he won't have to run far to reach any of the vases. Only one vase will shake at a time.

For the sixth part, Bentley, without leaving the platform he is currently at, has to use the grapple-cam to lure Inspector Fox to the main doors of General Tsao's palace. (One beacon marks her location, while another marks the palace doors.) Carmelita has rather good hearing, so the grapple-cam doesn't have to be too close to her before Bentley calls out through it. If Carmelita or something else blows up the grapple-cam, Bentley will have to send out another one. Note that during this part, Carmelita will not move around unless she hears or sees the grapple-cam.

For the seventh part, Sly leaves the palace just to see Murray recklessly screwing up the treasure-stealing portion of the plan. General Tsao also sees what's going on, and his anger cannot be described. The Cooper Gang has beaten him at his own sacred battlefield, destroyed his family temple, stolen his treasures, and (although he doesn't know it yet) ruined his wedding. Instead of blowing a blood vessel, Tsao summons a dragon that knocks away Murray and captures Penelope.

Not wanting to see the team's RC specialist having her innards crushed into paste, Sly has to go beat the dragon. Latch onto the rockets (marked by the beacons) to ride them up into the sky, and then paraglide onto the dragon. Sly can run across the dragon's back, but for an easier time, he should spire jump across its spine. Charge up to the dragon's head and whack it repeatedly, even when it twists around. This freaky dragon has several attacks, but all of them are pretty easy to avoid. If it breathes fire or sticks out its super-heated tongue, leap over the fire or the tongue and continue hitting the head. If it raises its claws, back away from the head to avoid the claws when they slam downwards. The dragon can also shake Sly off its back. When that happens, Sly should find another rocket (marked by the beacons) to return to the dragon. To complete this job, defeat the boss.